Halton Ontario Catholic District School Board Bans Formations Of Gay-Straight Alliances; Board Director Alice Anne Lemay Compares Gay-Straight Alliances To Nazi Groups Via Explanation

The Halton Ontario Catholic District School Board continues to cause controversy with its historic anti-gay stance, coming under condemnation for banning gay-straight alliances from its schools, reports the National Post. The board, which, as previously posted, includes a newly elected 21 year old openly gay trustee, Paul Marai, voted November 2nd, 2010 (after Marai was elected) to prohibit students from forming the gay social justice groups since, the board argues, the clubs would contradict with the school’s traditional Catholic value system. To make matters worse, in an interview with Xtra, Canada’s gay and lesbian newspaper, board director Alice Anne Lemay, offering an awkward defence, saying that there are a number of groups the board bars, and with good reason, Lemay, saying “We don’t have Nazi groups either. It’s not in accordance with the teachings of the church. If they wanted to have a club outside of school, fine, just not in school.” A statement posted Monday on the school board’s Web site, Ms. Lemay defended the board’s position, and argued her comments were taken out of context. “It was not my intent to make any type of comparison between gay straight alliances and Nazi groups. Rather, I was providing a number of examples of groups that are not endorsed and permitted in Halton Catholic schools, for example, groups in favour of abortion or hate groups of any nature,” she said. “I did not make a direct comparison between gay straight alliances and any of these groups, nor was that my intent.” The board also took pains to defend its policy, saying it has many safety and support measures in place, including dialogue groups that concentrate on inclusion, to ensure students feel safe and supported, the statement reading in part “Our priority is to promoted equity, inclusion and respect for the dignity of each human being in our system.” However, according to Helen Kennedy, the executive director of Egale Canada, which helps promote gay-straight alliances, the move by the Halton Catholic School District Board is not surprising, adding that efforts in the public schools face obstacles as well, pointing out last week that a public school student attempted to start a gay-straight alliance in his school, and had his Pride flag burned in protest. Kennedy, who hopes to meet with the Halton board to revisit the policy this week, said “They know from a study across the country, that gay-straight alliances offer safer, more inclusive and healthier environments for learning, so within the Halton board, I’m not sure they’ve given it due diligence.”